Obsession
by CodeRubicon
Summary: Shepard's life is centered around one goal: Stop the Reapers. Some say being a hero is a gift. In reality, it's a curse. One shot.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect**

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It had been at least nine weeks since the Alliance arrested him for blowing up the Alpha Relay. Commander Shepard paced across the floor of his cell in the Alliance HQ. He tried sleeping, but it would not come. Sleep was not something that came easily to him. Not since Akuze, anyway. The revelation of the Reapers hadn't helped. Neither had losing some of his closest friends on a suicide mission to stop the Collectors from harvesting humans.

No matter how hard he tried to keep it out, the same anxiety filled his mind. The Reapers were coming, and no matter what he did he could only delay their arrival. Every minute he spent thinking of a way to stop them. Every time he came across the same barrier: No one believed him. How was he supposed to stop a super advanced race of sentient machines if no one believed him? What did he have to do to convince them? Everyone was going to die if he could not do something.

It was driving him to the brink of insanity. Over and over, the same thoughts dominated his mind: Stop the Reapers. Stop the Reapers. Stop the Reapers. Stop the Reapers.

He punched the wall in pure frustration. He didn't notice the pain his expression of frustration had caused. He was too busy thinking. What could he do? He looked for a way out, and he couldn't find anything. Kinetic barriers were blocking his way, and he had no way to cut the power.

They were keeping him in this cell because they didn't want to face the truth. The Reapers. It all boiled up inside of him, culminating in a blood boiling shout.

"You've got to let me out of here! The Reapers are coming! Can't you see? We're all going to die unless you listen!"

His shout went unanswered. It was driving him crazy. He knew there were guards outside, somewhere. They had to listen. They had to listen. Otherwise, they would end up as husks or worse, melted into a Reaper.

Shepard slumped down and sat on the carpeted floor. It was soft, but that was of little comfort at the moment. He had to escape. He had to escape, get his crew, steal the Normandy, and find someone who would believe him.

He got up and sat down on his very comfortable yet useless bed. The artificial light above him could lead to a power supply unit, but it was so heavily guarded with glass that even his strength could not break it. Unless he had some help.

Shepard looked around his cell for something he could use to help him break the glass. That is where his plan hit a snag. The only things in his cell were a few books and some water. Shepard thought about ripping the pages out of the hardbacks and using the hardbacks to harden his punch, but realized that wouldn't work. It still wouldn't break the glass. That meant he couldn't escape.

Shepard slumped his shoulders in despair and fell onto the sickeningly comfortable bed his jailers provided. Despite having a large cell in which he could possibly run to try and ram his way through the wall, it wouldn't work. The bruises on his shoulder proved it.

The worst part about it all was that the cell was comfortable. His captors were treating him to the best meals and luxuries available, all while the clock ticked away as the Reapers inched near from their home in darkspace.

He was going to be residing in a luxury prison while the Reapers burned Earth to the ground. He couldn't even escape from the inside. His only hope of escape was if his crew came to save him. That would be a nice change of pace. After all he did for everyone, the galaxy owes him that at the very least.

A faint sound could be heard coming down the hall just outside his whitewashed prison cell. He realized the sound was alternating. It was footsteps. They weren't hard boots either, so whoever it was couldn't be a guard.

Sheard got up and peered out into the long hallway through the transparent kinetic barriers. There were more sounds. It wasn't one person, it was multiple people.

He finally saw three figures walking down the long hallway. They weren't human. No, the shape was wrong. From a distance, he could make out one turian, one asari, and one quarian.

Could it be?

"Garrus! Liara! Tali!", Shepard shouted.

"Shepard!", he heard Garrus's familiar voice say. Liara smiled, and it seemed like Tali did the same. Shepard could always tell. Shepard almost weeped tears of joy at the sight of his companions. They could get him out of here and fight the Reapers.

The three old friends pulled up a chair in front of the kinetic barrier that was preventing him from reaching freedom.

He looked at his old friends again, overjoyed at their arrival. They were here to break him out!

However, on closer examination, something seemed off. No one was wearing armor, save Tali. Second, no one was armed. It was unusual for Garrus to go into a mission without his sniper rifle. Liara had her biotics, of course. Tali could probably fight with her omnitool, but it would be tough. Maybe they didn't bring weapons because they had to sneak in? A group of aliens carrying shotguns and sniper rifles would certainly attract attention.

"Hey!", Tali said.

Shepard smiled widely.

"I'm glad you guys came. Quick, you need to find a way to break me out of here. The Reapers are coming, and I don't know how much time we have left.", Shepard said with a sense of urgency.

Suddenly his old friends seemed sad, or at least felt like it was an strange situation. Had something happened since the Alliance arrested him for blowing up the Alpha Relay?

"Shepard, like we told you last time, we're not here to break you out.", Liara said thoughtfully.

Last time? He's been in this cell for weeks! What last time?

"What last time? Look, it doesn't matter. Just get me out of here and we'll catch up on the Normandy.", Shepard said.

Shepard's old friends gave each other an odd look.

"Shepard, we were here just two weeks ago. We came to check up on you. Remember?", Tali said.

Shepard was astonished. None of this made sense. He was arrested for blowing up a Mass Relay. It's been a while since he's seen any of his old friends. Unless his friends had betrayed him. No, he didn't want to believe that. But what else made sense?

"Check up on me? Why? Look, we don't have time. Just get me out of here, we have to kill the Reapers.", Shepard said even more urgently.

Garrus's happy expression suddenly faded into one of sadness.

"Shepard, the Reapers are dead, remember? You killed them eighteen years ago. We talked about this last time.", Garrus said.

Shepard grew more and more puzzled. There was no last time. He hadn't seen Liara since he helped her become the Shadow Broker. This didn't make any sense.

"What last time? I haven't seen any of you in a long time, at least it feel like that.", Shepard said.

His old friends began saying something in a hushed tone, but Shepard could still make it out.

"He still doesn't remember.", Garrus said.

Tali leaned in closer.

"I thought the doctor said Shepard was showing positive results to the new medication.",Tali said.

"Doctors have been wrong before.", Liara said solemnly.

Shepard grew slightly angry at the whole situation.

"You're making it sound like I'm crazy. If that's so, why am I being kept in my own cell? Why aren't I out with the other patients?", Shepard challenged.

"Shepard, you nearly escaped several times. You even severely injured a guard. They put you here to protect the rest of the patients.", Liara said softly.

Shepard shook his head violently. He didn't believe them. It had to be some Reaper trick or the Illusive Man getting back at him for leaving Cerberus.

"I don't believe you.", Shepard said.

Liara put her hand up against the kinetic barrier seperating her from Shepard and continued.

"After you killed all the Reapers, we believed you were dead. We were combing through the rubble and we found your still-breathing body. We rushed you to surgery and managed to restore you, but not completely. Coupled with the horrible condition we found you in, after all the stress of fighting the Reapers, losing close friends, and watching people die, you just snapped. We put you here for your own good. The doctors are working to help you. I'm sorry, but we can't take you out of here.", Liara explained.

Shepard still shook his head in disbelief.

"That can't be true. There is still work to be done.", Shepard said.

"Goodbye, Shepard. We'll come see you again soon.", Tali said with sorrow in her voice.

The three friends rose from their chairs and began their journey back down the long hallway connecting Shepard's cell to the rest of the mental hospital.

Shepard's pulse elevated, watching his friends abandon him and take away his only chance of escape.

"Wait! Tali! Liara! Garrus! The Reapers are coming! You have to let me out of here! I have to stop the Reapers! Come back! WAIT!", Shepard screamed. It did no good. His friends had already left.

His heart almost stopped. Even they didn't believe him. He needed rest. Maybe that would stop the thoughts.

Shepard sat down on his bed, exhausted. Then he got up, and began pacing.

It had been at least nine weeks since the Alliance arrested him for blowing up the Alpha Relay...


End file.
